Tmj

[Texasgirl]

Does anyone here suffer from TMJ?

If so have you found anything that helps relieve the pain and popping?

This week it seems I have a major loud and very painful pop every day sometimes twice a day.

Insurance does not cover it and neither does our discount dental plan.

TIA
Cindy

[PrairieRose]

I have a bad case of it from high school basketball when I got my jaw jacked. Mine pops several times per day and sometimes if I'm having a headache I can pop it and the headache goes away. 2 of the most helpful things I've found are a night time mouth guard (walmart sells them in the oral products dept. or you can buy on off of ebay...they super expensive through the dentist for the same thing) and when you have an episode of a painful pop or if your jaw locks shut (mine does this frequently when I bite with my front teeth....hard not to panic but just relax) take a couple of minutes and concentrate on relaxing those jaw muscles, move the jaw ever so slightly back and forth (side ways) until it opens up. Then open the mouth as far as possible, sit with the head tilted forward, hold open for at least a minute, longer if you can and then slowly let it go back to a closed position. I read this trick once in a magazine and it really, really works for me. I use this if I'm having the headache I mentioned before and it makes a huge difference.

Just remember not to panic if you start getting the locked shut thing....you can work it out....I had mine lock shut when I was being fitted for a crown with cement in mouth....the dentist bout freaked out and said I'm gonna have to break your jaw.... I was like uh huh, wait....and I finally got it open....he just about pulled all my teeth the cement filled mouthpiece though... Anyway it's the pits....but I've lived with it for 32 years now. I wouldn't have the surgery even if it were covered. The implants are terrible........ .

[Ceashels]

I have also had TMJ problems since highschool. I'm very careful not to eat things that require a lot of "crunching" like tortilla chips and have learned how to yawn without the big gaping open mouth look. I must be very careful of my head position because I tend to dislocate more frequently in certain positions and I tend to dislocate with my jaw open. The first time it happened I was brushing my teeth.

One of the exercises I was taught was to "draw" the alphabet with your tongue on the inside of each cheek. So draw an 'a' on the left cheek then the right. The small movements side to side will help work many of the small muscles that control the jaw.

If you have any malalignment of your jaw currently (over/under bite) be very careful about using a mouth guard. Sometimes more damage can be done by holding the jaw in a position it should not be in (for 8 hrs a night). This does not mean that a good dentist with experience cant work wonders, but I've heard horror stories of how even custom guards have caused more harm than good. So please be careful with what you try.

You could also try some massage techniques to the major muscles that work the jaw. Long strokes up the temporal muscles will help relax the jaw. You can find where the muscle is by placing your fingertips along the sides of your head and slowly opening and closing your jaw. You will feel the muscles contract under your fingers so adding some gentle pressure and moving in long strokes from your TMjoint upward or small circular movements of your fingertips from the jaw and over the muscle will help relax everything. There are ways to massage the internal jaw muscles as well but they are more intricate and not as comfortable. I don't know if you could find information on that online.

I hope some of this can help you.

[Cricket1]

I had issues with this many years ago and again, just three weeks ago. I went to the DDS--I had had almonds the night before the problem started. Once you have a severe episode where you are in pain, go to a soft diet for 3-5 days. This lets your jaw rest without having to do a lot of work chewing. I also got a mouth guard at Walgreens. Something I never realized until recently is that I clench my teeth a lot throughout the day and at night. I have woken up with a headache and sore jaw many times because I clench in my sleep (I have also ruined MANY teeth this way--just had a molar removed because it had a root canal years ago and then became cracked--probably due to my clenching). Now that I have a mouth guard, I have noticed a HUGE difference. I also don't wake up tired. So--in summary, get a mouth guard and watch what you are eating...also, gum is a big no no.

[zakity]

I have TMJ. Mine was that my jaw was misaligned. I had braces and an herbst and it corrected it enough that I am not in massive pain anymore.

[Texasgirl]

I have a night guard that a dentist made for me 7 years ago. I wear it every night.
It has gotten so bad that its also effecting my ears and neck.

Bengay ointment has become my best friend it helps some but not much.

I have had my mouth get stuck open & had to have dh push the jaw back in place.

I have had it since I was a teenager. My mom use to think I was popping on purpose and would get mad until the Dentist told her differently.

Thanks for all the information.

[PrairieRose]

I wanted to add....avoid chewing gum, especially big harder gum like bubble gum. And if you chew it don't chew it until it gets so hard you're really having to work at it........Ugh. That makes my tmj act up so bad.

[zakity]

I loved gum. I had to give it up though.

[MisaLady]

Don't do anything that requires you open your mouth too wide or open and close it repetitively - no really big suckers, no chewing gum, etc.

For me, massaging the little muscle there helps (I do it on the outside). If I'm really having a bad time, just pressing and holding on that helps... you do have to be careful here to make sure you get that muscle and not the actual joint itself.

Alternating heat/ice can help sometimes. Sometimes, it makes it worse.

Also, because my top teeth and my bottom teeth connect weirdly (and like to break... how fun), orajel is my friend. And since both my dental and my medical insurance say "The other guys are supposed to cover it" , I keep an extra pill or two around when prescribed something stronger for another reason (I have lots of medical issues...). I will say, though, that my doctor will give me something for the pain when I really need her to, though it sucks to have to go in just for that. I also find that applying heat to my ears helps with ear problems associated with TMJ.

I recently saw a video on some exercises you can do. There's one where they say something will be "quite tender" and they're not lying!!! But most of the others aren't "tender"...

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As it turns out, I've probably had TMJ problems since I was a teenager and nobody caught it until a couple of months ago. I did, of course, know I had problems, just thought they weren't really related. Now I know better. And I'm HUGE on doing research on the net to help myself in any way possible. I've found some things that help, some that seem to make it worse... I imagine that's the same for everyone. Unfortunately, most of this seems to be trial and error and not everybody responds the same way. If something hurts - and you don't feel better immediately after - don't do that thing again! It's helpful if you keep track somewhere... maybe a file on your computer or a piece of paper in the medicine cabinet or something... because sometimes when we're in pain, we forget that we saw something that helped others or that this thing we thought would help actually made it worse for us.

[Jskell911]

I have it pretty badly. I have a dime sized piece of my lower jaw that is missing because of it. I did try braces (again!) as an adult, but it was a waste of $7000! I was on Elavil and that helped a bit. My bit issue is clenching.

[Megareader]

I had TMJ for many years, it was from 2 injuries when I was 14. Over the years I lost so much movement in my jaw that by the time I was 42 I could not open my mouth wide enough for the dentist to do any work and all I could eat was soup and slim-fast. Grudgingly our health insurance approved the surgery. That was 9 years ago and I am so glad I was able to get it fixed. If my only problem had been popping or occasional pain surgery wouldn't have been in the picture but in my case I really had no choice.

As far as cost, 9 years ago the surgery ran $25,000. I have no idea what it would be now but you know how everything goes up.

[katholc]

I have TMJ and have had it for a number of years. For a long time I had no real problems except popping when I opened my mouth widely. Then about 1 1/2 years ago I took a job with a lot of stress attached. I began grinding my teeth at night and the problems multiplied hugely. I ended up going to see a dentist, then an orthodontist and am now in braces. The braces seem to be working for now. We'll see at the end of treatment.